The History of goo.tc

Scott Hardie | October 22, 2006
In less than a week, this site will turn ten years old. I bet you didn't know that, and I bet you don't know a lot more revealed in The History of goo.tc, which I prepared for the occasion. I'd love to restore old pages from the archive to illustrate some of the content I can only describe, but that will have to wait; perhaps next year? I do plan to add 10 more events to the feature on each anniversary from now on.

Please let me know what you think of the feature. Nearly every major site user is mentioned (with my apologies to the overlooked), but the feature is, unsurprisingly, predominantly about me and the site's effect on my life. Now comes your chance to contribute: Answer the following questions and share with us a bit of your own site history.

How did you first come across the site and become involved?

What has the site changed about you or your life?

What are one or more of your fondest memories from the site's past?

Erik Bates | October 22, 2006
[hidden by request]

Jackie Mason | October 22, 2006
[hidden by request]

Erik Bates | October 22, 2006
[hidden by request]

Steve West | October 22, 2006
For a period, Scott introduced the notion of creating a list about yourself with one false entry. The object of the other site users to figure out which entry was false. Although I screwed my own entry up, I learned so much about people on the site - the uniqueness and complexity of character, the complete alienness of experience compared to me, the camaraderie of past experience that I am allowed to share in vicariously. Oh, and Predict the Oscars - can we do that daily, too? What a rush!

Lori Lancaster | October 22, 2006
[hidden by request]

Lori Lancaster | October 22, 2006
[hidden by request]

Aaron Shurtleff | October 24, 2006
How did you first come across the site and become involved?

Well, I was introduced to the site by Scott (Ha, not Ho) when I joined up with the gaming group down here in Saint Petersburg. At the time, there was a gaming calendar that we used to coordinate schedules, plan sessions, etc. I started poking my nose into other sections, starting with GOO, then TC, XQC, and, lastly, TMC (where I am, apparently, thus far the only non-Scott contributor). Haven't gone to FIN, but who knows what the future will bring! :P

What has the site changed about you or your life?

Golly! I'm not one of the people who have been here for a long time, so I don't know how much the site has impacted me yet. I think I'm getting to be more open, thanks to spewing out a bit of my personal giblets in my Exquisite Corpse blog (that's MiracleASSassin...go now!!). You know, I also am kind of learning to express myself and form opinions better, which sounds lame, but I think it's true. I used to avoid saying things that other people might take exception to, but I think I've popped up in TC in a few mildly controversial conversations! (Of course, I back down at the slightest hint of disagreement...I have a ways to go!) I am starting to embrace technology more (people have said I'm a Luddite, which is hyperbole, but not without certain accuracies!). And, of course, I've met a few people I would not have otherwise known!

What are one or more of your fondest memories from the site's past?

Again, I don't have much past here... I do like seeing all of the flashes at the top, like "Jason Federow Ate My Balls", which never made sense until I read the 10th Anniversary snippet...not that it makes a lot more sense, but it helps! :) I think the fondest part of the site, for me, is that it really does seem like a big extended family. I'm glad to be part of it... You guys rock! Warm fuzzies all around!!

Amy Austin | October 25, 2006
Awww... group hug, Aaron, group hug -- right back at ya'!

Well, partly because I'm lazy, partly because it's really late (and I've deprived myself of more than enough sleep lately) and partly because I don't really know that I have totally defined answers for these questions...
what Aaron said. ;-) And Lori. (Thank you for the becoming remarks there, cyber-friend -- likewise, I am sure... hopefully, we can claim more than online friendship one day as well!)

I think I've commented elsewhere on TC about my discovery of the site and the impact it's had on me... but I honestly can't remember exactly what search it was that lead me to stumble upon the site. (I'd like to think that I might be able to jog my memory with a quick review of what goo was current at the time that I joined, but I'm pretty sure that the goo responsible was one that was archived... and I would have to look through the archive to figure out/remember who that was. I'm pretty sure it was a woman... but I am too tired to delve into it right this moment.)

Even if not all comments made in all discussions here have indicated such, I hope everyone "feels the love" from me nonetheless. There truly is no one here that I wouldn't want to meet in person (contrary to any assumptions some might have/make about my history with certain other authors) -- I can't say what the resulting feelings would be in all situations, but I can say that I think everyone here is as "real" as they can be, and I totally respect that and would carry that respect into any "real-life" meetings/introductions. No one here has ever made it not worth my while to be here... even in the most trying of discussions. Thanks, Scott -- and everyone else -- for welcoming me into the fold and making for interesting discussion in the absence of any "real-life" friends!!! (They always live out of my real-life radius... so in that respect, you all have much in common with them -- and probably actually hear from me more often!!! ;-p)

Amy Austin | October 25, 2006
Oh, yeah... and I also enjoyed many of the same moments mentioned here (like Assignment: South Park -- but what happened to the images in that archived discussion??? Just for kix, I tried to revisit it and relive the moment... but everyone was gone! Y'all exist now... only in my memory (sniff sniff) ;-p)

Amy Austin | October 25, 2006
One more note to Scott:

Wow... I had no idea what a serious impact this site has been in your life -- esp. that low point you shared about being depressed/suicidal. I am really glad that you had this vehicle to drive yourself back out of hell, dude. Keep on keeping on... I don't know what I would do without the Goo at this point! ;-D

Thanks for sharing that brief history of the site... I'm with Aaron on learning the truth about Jason Federow's penchant for balls. Wish I could have been on the inside of more jokes! ;-D

(And BTW -- on the subject of my new job... I had tried to give you first notice a while back after our last correspondence, but I think your spam filter must have eaten my note to you thanking your dream job genie for his prompt response! I will try to FW it to you again, if you'll be on the lookout for it... although it's quite a bit after the fact now... but still, THANKS! ;-D)

Amy Austin | October 25, 2006
Okay... going for a record of back-to-back posts in one discussion... but I just had to say one more thing to Jackie:

I'm not sure what my fondest memories are. I did like the create your own Southpark character thing. That was cool. One thing I have liked is seeing the regular users pictures change over time. Not everyone has changed their picture and some people only one time that I have seen.

I know, I know... as I just said in the Michalik discussion, I'm working on getting an updated pic online! But this brings up another idea in my head: Scott! Please (for the love of God... or at least your PITA users like myself) -- consider using South Park creations in the place of question marks!!! Like Russ Wilhelm's fanboy image... I would rather see that than the big white squiggle!!! PLEASE!?!?

Jackie Mason | October 26, 2006
[hidden by request]

Megan Baxter | October 26, 2006
I first happened upon this when a game on one of the big gamesites was discontinued that I really liked - you answered trivia, and a small part of a celebrity's face was revealed, and you had to guess who it was. I was uncannily good at this - often getting them on just an eye or a mouth. People often thought I was cheating.

So, when it was discontinued I was looking for something similar, and googled something like recognizing faces game, or something, and celebritygoogame popped up. Those particular skills ended up being useless, because in the distortion, the features I could use to identify people weren't available, but it ended up using a whole other bunch of skills.

It's been a fun way to start my mornings, although occasionally frustrating too. It's forced me to work on my lateral thinking skills. And it's enjoyable. I have a number of friends I think would enjoy it, but the only one who's tried is Chris McKinnon, who ended up also being very good at the game. There's lots of friendly rivalry going on there :)

Scott Horowitz | October 30, 2006
Wow, I came upon this site through Mitzman.. who've I been friends with for about 9 years now. He showed it to me a few times, and then I think there was one goo, and I just entered on a whim, and then there was the oscars game.... that was fun.

I love TC, to quote Scott "it's the heart of goo.tc".. There are so many free thinkers here, I love agreeing with them or arguing with them. I've met so many great people here, who I'd love to meet in real person. If you guys ever come to NY, you can always buy me a beer.

The South Park game was great, I love the Oscars game. But, to me, it's the people here that make this site great, better than any game or thing you can think of Scott... sorry :)

Kris Weberg | November 3, 2006
I came in via an invitation through Anna Gregoline to play in Web Survivor 3, and almost immediately managed to sabotage whatever social networking could've occured via the site thanks to a pointless effort at Machiavellian rule-twisting on my part.

Luckily, Scott is forgiving of such lapses, even as he tirelessly works on this equally sophisticated and artistic set of pages;, the folks here were (and are) genial, thoughtful people; and all of that rubbed off on me enough that I found my own small place here.

Scott's found something that expresses, and even saves his life here. And it's that expression of his life, the living, dynamic stuff of the friendships, loves, and interests that see him through, that also includes the generous, comfortable space in which the rest of us have luckily and amazingly gotten to know each other.

If not for this site, I'd never have stayed friends with Anna. I'd never have met the astounding D R,surely a candidate for some kind of postmodern version of sainthood. I wouldn't have been able to sharpen my wits trying to keep up with dedicated and bright people like Mike Eberhart and Steve Dunn as we discussed politics, law, ethics, and, most importantly, pop culture. I'd not have gotten to swap jokes and gibes with Amy and Anthony.

Most of all, I wouldn't have gotten to come in contact with the clever, smart, and subtle mind of Scott Hardie, nor gotten to know that giving, patient, and caring man who keeps this site...not just together, not just "going," but beating richly and deeply in time, a beat to which we all have the privilege of dancing all night, any night.

Steve Dunn | November 13, 2006
I don't remember how I found this site. I think I came for the Goo Game, back in those long-ago days when it was actually winnable (or it seemed so, which is not to say I ever won).

But my day will come. Oh yes, my day will come.

I stayed for TC, which immediately intrigued me because people here post photos of ourselves and use our real names. When I first arrived here, I was in-between leaving an online forum I'd frequented for years, and launching a new one of my own. I was keenly interested in admin/moderator issues, ie, how to be a good one. The one at the site I left was awful, and I wanted to be a good one on my own site. The real names and pictures here struck me immediately as key components of respectful conversation.

Then I began to notice that many of the people who hang around here are really, really smart.

Scott Hardie | November 16, 2006
Thanks for everything you all wrote, and for being a part of this site. You know how important this site and its users are to me, and I have a personal relationship with many of you that means even more. What Jackie wrote is similar for me too: I lost touch with good friends who don't use the site, and yet the site has kept me in touch with (and made good friends out of) people who were once acquaintances. I'm so grateful to know all of you and have this thing together.

Would everyone have still mentioned the South Park thing if I hadn't made that the homepage header for two weeks? :-) I liked the South Park thing too, and maybe I'll add that to the History feature next anniversary. That old discussion's images got lost in the move to a new domain but I'll put them back. I won't allow South Park faces for site users because they're too much fun, and I know some site users will replace their existing photos with South Park faces because it's already been asked of me. What I can do is get rid of the question mark in favor of something like a gender-specific silhouette – something that is unappealing enough that people will still want to use photos instead, but not quite as displeasing an image as the old question mark.

Lori, I read your original "rant" pre-edit and I didn't find anything wrong with it. You have a great memory for this stuff – I couldn't have made the History feature without all the old versions of the site still on my hard drive :-) – and you had some things to get off your chest. It was good of you to say so. I think I probably made your role in WWYK sound too negative, but I really did (and do) appreciate you trying to bring more traffic to my site.

Amy, I too am glad the site was here for me to get out of depression. It did so back in 2003 when I was at the brink, but it helped a lot earlier this year, too: On TC I wrote about how my mind was messed up with nightmares about human sacrifice and skull imagery, and my fear of turning into a cranky old man who complains about screaming kids in the Publix, and the kind words of everyone here pulled me out of it and helped me make some overdue changes for the better in my life. Unfortunately your reward for it is that I'm never around any more because I'm out there living a happy, healthy life. ;-) Thank you all for saving me, twice.

Megan, I'm glad you appreciate the daily game. Every time I consider taking weekends off or something because my schedule is so full, I remember how much it bugs me when sites like Hollywood Stock Exchange don't update on Sundays and I have to go a day without new content from a favorite site. I won't make GOO fans go through the same.

Kris, your WPS3 strategy was a solid one and I should have been more appreciative of that at the time. (For what it's worth, Jeff Probst says it breaks his heart before each TV-show challenge when the players ask his permission to bend the rules a certain way, because it forces him to say no, and if instead of asking they had just done it during the challenge he'd have patted them on the back for getting away with it.) When you made your move in 2001, I was upset in general at having my hard work putting games together be violated by people who thought it was funny to fuck with me, and I was incensed by what Kelly had told me that night about "deserving" to have my games violated because I take them seriously, but whatever anger I had towards you personally Kris was fleeting and undeserved. Your only crime was picking a lousy time to employ a great strategy. :-) (If anybody wants to read my old and needlessly detailed rant about what happened, go ahead.)

Anna Gregoline | November 16, 2006
I was upset in general at having my hard work putting games together be violated by people who thought it was funny to fuck with me, and I was incensed by what Kelly had told me that night about "deserving" to have my games violated because I take them seriously, but whatever anger I had towards you personally Kris was fleeting and undeserved.

Neither Kris nor I in that instance were trying to violate your game or thought it was funny, or were trying to fuck with you. Like all reality games, I figured that trickery was always fair play. And Kris talked me into it. =)

Lori Lancaster | October 22, 2007
[hidden by request]

Scott Hardie | October 23, 2007
Thank you. It now has more mentions of you. :-D

Amy Austin | October 23, 2007
I don't remember seeing anything about impossibly hard goos... ;-)

Lori Lancaster | October 23, 2007
[hidden by request]

Scott Hardie | October 23, 2007
Hehe, yes. I figured as much.

There are seven new events grouped at the end, with one in 2000 and two in 2004.

Steve Dunn | October 23, 2007
Minor correction to the section naming the people who joined the goo game through me: I have no idea who Chris Bourg is.

Scott Hardie | October 23, 2007
My mistake. He joined at the same time as the others with a Duke-related email address and I assumed. Thanks.

Scott Hardie | October 29, 2008
This year's ten new additions are a day late because of GooCon, but they've been added to the History now: (link) There's one in 1998, one in 2005, one in 2007, and seven in 2008.

Happy 12th anniversary, goo.tc! As fantastic as GooCon was, I consider the present to be a relatively dark time for the site, with the goo game in disarray and this ongoing webhost mess driving us nuts. But I came out of GooCon with a positive outlook for the site's future, and specific plans for improvements thanks to Steve and Miah. Things will get better. Stick around for the 13th anniversary to find out what I have in mind.